DNA will become future sunscreen
There is a DNA fragment, called pTT which can help repair and prevent skin damage caused by UV radiation, say researchers at Boston University Medical School.
A protein called p53 suppresses the growth of tumours (tumors), it also helps repair damaged DNA. PPT triggers p53.
The researchers used sunlamps to expose hairless mice to UV radiation.
They found that the mice which had pTT rubbed into their skin were six times less likely to develop a tumour.
The DNA fragment penetrates the skin, it then imitates a response normally caused by DNA damaged. This then triggers DNA repair enzymes.
When skin is exposed to UC, the enzymes are already in the cells and help prevent damage.
'I wouldn't be wrong if I said that most British people and Celts (in general, people of Northern ancestry) are at high risk,' he told the BBC. “We hope that this could lead to new treatments being developed and we are working on it as fast as we can.'
We could soon see trials on humans.
Incidences of skin cancer are growing around the world as more and more people expose their skin to sunlight.
